Beheading suspect's family not happy with OP's response
Pini Bothoko | Friday January 17, 2020 15:05
The devastated family of Simon Kgowe, who was initially accused of beheading his lover Elizabeth Bonolo Kerekang in July 2018 in Gaborone, says it has given up on the country’s justice system.
One family member told Mmegi they recently received a response from the letter they penned to OP last year complaining about malicious prosecution.
The family is accusing prosecution of dragging the case unnecessarily and on purpose in what they view as punishment. They said the case has been dragged from mid-2018 until the charges against Kgowe were withdrawn mid last year.
The family representative said the way the case was handled was not fair, by firstly pointing out their son’s arrest where they accuse the police of torture.
“The way the case was handled was not fair at all, our family suffered psychological and financial stress after continued efforts to clear Kgowe’s name. The family has gone through a lot following the alleged murder,” said a family member.
The family member added that even though they all along knew that their son did not commit such a gruesome offence, they are traumatised by the fact that he was labelled a murderer.
The family said the charges could have been dropped back in December 2018, but the police played delaying tactics.
They suspect the police might have done so because they didn’t want to appear as if they did not conduct their investigations thoroughly and consequently charged the wrong person.
The member of the family disclosed that they suffered trauma and humiliation adding that the country’s legal system should be accountable.
“We received the response from OP but we are not happy with it because OP has referred us back to court, the same system that we were not happy on how they handled the case. In their response OP said they do not want to interfere with court proceedings. This is more than a court case hence we are thinking of seeking help from outside the country.”
The family member said they would report to court every two weeks for almost two years something that results in the family suffering financial stress.
“All along we knew Kgowe was innocent. He loved his late girlfriend dearly such that he could not commit such a gruesome act. The justice system has failed us hence (we are) planning to seek help elsewhere.”
However the then Botswana Police Service’s (BPS) deputy public relations officer, senior superintendent Near Bagali said charges against Kgowe were dropped to allow the police to further their investigations.
Bagali pleaded for Kgowe’s family’s patience to allow the justice system to give the case the attention it deserves as the wheels of justice drive slowly.
“We cannot sacrifice essential ingredients of justice. This is a murder case and the intension is not to leave any stone unturned. We cannot run over this case because it involves the life of an individual that was taken so savagely,” Bagali had said.
He stated that the police’s investigations cannot be determined by what people say or their sentiments, as probes into matters like this require time to be further investigated. The police boss revealed that it can take up to five years or even more for BPS to investigate a murder case.